THE goalless draw secured by Sunshine Stars FC of Akure late Saturday night against Etoile Du Sahel of Tunisia in a CAF Champions League Group A match has earned the players accolades from coach Gbenga Ogunbote who attributed the result to their determination and resilience.

The Nigerian flagbearer kept its head in the face of pressure particularly in the first half which was clearly dominated by the host who played in front of its vociferous crowd at the Olympics Stadium in Sousse.

Poor marksmanship by Etoile's forwards, solid defending by the Stars backline marshalled by Godfrey Oboabona with contributions by Osawe Alaba, Oluwasina Abe, Soga Sambo, James Ebitogwa and Ado Ali as well as the sharp reflexes of goalkeeper Moses Ocheje ensured that the Nigerian flagbearer picked up its first point in the group stage.

Speaking after the encounter, coach Ogunbote said the draw was good enough to revive the team's hope in the group after losing 0-2 to Esperance in the opening game, giving kudos to his players especially the defenders and goalkeeper Ocheje for keeping their heads throughout the match.

"I did say before the match that we have a good away record which we can bank on to give us somethign good against Etoile Du Sahel. Even though we did not win, the result is fair enough compared to an outright loss.

''Many people believed we have come to the end of the road after wee lost 0-2 at home to Esperance but we kept faith that we are still very much in the race and this draw has to a larger extent put on back on track in the group.

''This is what we will bank on as we face the remaining four matches beginning from our next home game against ASO Chlef of Algeria,'' added coach Ogunbote.

Matches will resume in the first week of August as leaders Esperance with six points tackles local rival Etoile which has four points while Sunshine Stars with a point will go for the maximum points when they host pointless ASO Chlef of Algeria in Ijebu-Ode.

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